Student Finance Wales - Support from the Welsh Government

What Student Finance Wales offers

You will receive a combination of loans and non-repayable grants from the Welsh Government to fund your studies at a university or college in the United Kingdom. The funding consists of two parts.

• Tuition Fee Loan of up to about 8,130 EUR per year: The amount will be paid directly to your university. You will repay it later.
• Living-cost support: A maintenance loan (repayable) and a maintenance grant, which you never have to repay. The amount depends on your household income and where you live whilst studying.

For the lowest household incomes, total living costs range from around 12,800 EUR if you live with your parents, and around 15,100 EUR if you live outside London, up to around 18,800 EUR if you live in London. For higher household incomes, you will receive a smaller grant and a larger loan. In certain situations, you may also be eligible for additional support: a childcare grant, a parental education grant, a grant for adult dependants, and a grant for students with disabilities to cover study-related costs.

Who can apply

• Where you live: On the first day of your first year of study, your main place of residence is in Wales. You have also lived in the United Kingdom and on the British Isles for the three years prior to the start of your studies.
• Nationality: You are a British national, an Irish citizen or have ‘settled status’. Other groups of people are also eligible, including refugees, those with humanitarian protection status, and certain categories under the EU and Ukraine schemes.
• Course: You have been offered a place on a degree programme leading to a first degree (e.g. BA, BSc, BEd, Foundation Degree, HNC, HND or a teacher training programme) at a publicly funded or recognised UK university or higher education institution.
• First degree: This is usually your first degree programme. Exceptions apply to teacher training and to certain medical and dental degree programmes.
• Age: There is no age limit for the grants and the loan to cover tuition fees. The loan to cover living costs is intended exclusively for students under the age of 60.
• Subject: Any subject is allowed.

How to apply

Applications are made online via the Student Finance Wales portal. You do not need to have a confirmed place at university at this stage. Apply by 16 May and submit a new application each academic year.

How realistic are your chances?

This is not a competitive scholarship where a panel selects the winners. The grant is awarded on a means-tested basis: if you meet the eligibility criteria regarding place of residence, nationality and course of study, you will receive the grant. The tuition fee loan is not means-tested. The amount of your living costs grant and your loan depends on your household income. Please apply for the funding in good time and confirm your household income straight away so that payments can begin on time when your studies start.